CRAWFORD, WILLIAM.
Bill Crawford and New World Book Fair collection, 1853-1992 [bulk 1932-1992]

Restrictions on Access

Unrestricted access.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

All requests subject to limitations noted in departmental policies on reproduction.

Source

Purchased from Bill Crawford.

Custodial History

Bill Crawford, proprietor of New World Book Fair, transferred some of the stock remaining in his possession after the bookstore’s closing, along with some material he created or collected as part of his business dealings and political work, to the Rose Library.

Citation

[after identification of item(s)], Bill Crawford and New World Book Fair collection, Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library, Emory University.

Appraisal Note

Curator for African American Collections, Randall Burkett, acquired the collection as part of the Rose Library’s holdings in African American history and culture.

Processing

Arranged and described at the file level by Carrie Hintz and Sarah Quigley, 2018.

This finding aid may include language that is offensive or harmful. Please refer to the Rose Library's harmful language statement for more information about why such language may appear and ongoing efforts to remediate racist, ableist, sexist, homophobic, euphemistic and other oppressive language. If you are concerned about language used in this finding aid, please contact us at rose.library@emory.edu.

Biographical Note

William H. (Bill) Crawford was born in 1911 in upstate New York. He moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1948 to work on Henry Wallace’s presidential campaign. In 1949 he married Miriam Crawford. The couple was very involved in leftist politics and movements, including various labor, civil rights, black power, and anti-war causes. Crawford was a long-time member of the Communist Party of the USA (CPUSA), joining the party in 1934. He was a district organizer for the Party in the 1950s, and ran a CPUSA-affiliated bookstore in Philadelphia called New World Book Fair. Bill ran for Philadelphia city controller on the Communist Party ticket in 1971. Bill and Miriam had two children, Douglass and Fanny. William Crawford died of complications from Alzheimer’s disease in 2002.

New World Book Fair was located at 113 S. 40th street in West Philadelphia. It operated from 1961-1974 and specialized in Marxist and African American books. It became a gathering place for activists and those united around progressive causes. After the shuttering of New World Book Fair, Crawford helped to run the DuBois Book Store in North Philadelphia, which also specialized in African American and leftist works.

Scope and Content Note

The collection consists of the papers of Bill Crawford, as well as material that had formed the inventory of the New World Book Fair. Material primarily includes printed material such as posters, advertisements, pamphlets, and programs, concerning leftist political movements and African American culture from 1932-1992.

Arrangement Note

Arranged alphabetically by topic